AOS 43 Required Parent Updates
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
(FERPA)
AOS 43 adheres to all laws and regulations under both the Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act and No Child Left Behind legislation. The Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act (“FERPA”) provides certain rights to parents and eligible students (18 years
of age or older) with respect to the student’s education records.
A. Inspection of Records: Parents/eligible students may inspect and review the
student’s education records within 5 days of making a request. Such requests must be
submitted to the Superintendent or building administrator in writing and must identify the
record(s) to be inspected. The Superintendent or building administrator will notify the
parent/eligible student of the time and place where the record(s) may be inspected in the
presence of school staff. Parents/eligible students may obtain copies of education records
at a cost of $.10 per page.
B. Amendment of Records: Parents/eligible students may ask the School
Department to amend education records they believe are inaccurate, misleading or in
violation of the student’s right to privacy. Such requests must be submitted to the
Superintendent or building administrator in writing, clearly identify the part of the record
they want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading. If the Superintendent
or building administrator decides not to amend the record as requested, the parent/eligible
student will be notified of the decision, their right to request a hearing and information
about the hearing process.
C. Disclosure of Records: The School Department must obtain a parent/eligible
student’s written consent prior to disclosure of personally identifiable information in
education records except in circumstances permitted by law or regulations as summarized
below.
1. Directory Information: The School Department designates the following student
information as director information that may be made public at its discretion: name,
participation and grade level of students in officially recognized activities and sports,
height and weight of student athletes, dates of attendance in the school unit, honors and
awards received, and photographs and videos relating to student participation in school
activities open to the public (except photographs and videos on the Internet).
Parents/eligible students who do not want the School Department to disclose directory
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information must notify the Superintendent in writing by September 15 or within thirty
(30) days of enrollment, whichever is later. This opt-out request will remain in effect
unless and until it is rescinded.
2. Military Recruiters/Institutions of Higher Education: Military recruiters and
institutions of higher education are entitled to receive the names, addresses and telephone
numbers of secondary students and the School Department must comply with any such
request, provided that parents have been notified of their right to request that this
information not be released without their prior written consent. Parents/eligible students
who do not want the School Department to disclose this information without their prior
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written consent must notify the Superintendent in writing by September 15 or within
thirty (30) days of enrollment, whichever is later.
3. School Officials with Legitimate Educational Interests: Education records may
be disclosed to school officials with a “legitimate educational interest”. A school official
has a legitimate education interest if he/she needs to review an education record in order
to fulfill his/her professional responsibility. School officials include persons employed by
the School Department as an administrator, supervisor, instructor or support staff member
(including health or medical staff and law enforcement unit personnel); members of the
Board of Education; persons or companies with whom the School Department has
contracted to provide specific services (such as attorneys, auditors, medical consultants,
evaluators or therapists); and volunteers who are under the direct control of the School
Department with regard to education records.
4. Health or Safety Emergencies: In accordance with federal regulations, the School
Department may disclose education records in a health or safety emergency to any person
whose knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the
student or other individuals without prior written consent.
5. Other School Units: As required by Maine law, the School Department sends
student education records to a school unit to which a student applies for transfer,
including disciplinary records, attendance records, special education records and health
records (except for confidential health records for which consent for dissemination has
not been obtained).
6. Other Entities/Individuals: Education records may be disclosed to other entities
and individual as specifically permitted by law. Parents/eligible students may obtain
information about other exceptions to the written consent requirement by request to the
Superintendent or building administrator.
D. Complaints Regarding School Department Compliance with FERPA
Parents/eligible students who believe that the School Department has not complied with
the requirements of FERPA have the right to file a complaint with the U. S. Department
of Education. The office that administers FERPA is:
Family Policy Compliance Office U. S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Avenue,
SW Washington, D. C. 20202
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND
HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHER STATUS
(HQT)
No Child Left Behind legislation stipulations there are certain criteria that teachers must
meet. This is referred to as “highly qualified” status. It is our obligation to provide you
with information about the teacher(s) who are teaching your children. Under these
requirements, teachers who teach in a school that provides programming using Federal
Government funds from Title I must meet general qualifications as well as the specific
requirements of the subject they are teaching. This means we must inform parents
whenever a teacher who does not meet the federal definition of “Highly Qualified”.
We believe that a caring, competent, and qualified teacher for every child is the most
important ingredient in education reform, and we want to assure parents that we consider
all of our teachers to be fully qualified for their positions. All teachers are currently
required to teacher under Maine’s strict certification requirements. Teachers must have
college degrees and many have advanced degrees. In addition, every teacher continues
his or her own learning through professional development activities, and teachers are
evaluated to make sure that their teaching skills remain at the highest possible level.
Most teachers already meet the federal definition of “Highly Qualified”. Those teachers
who do not meet this federal standard will be able to do so by passing a test called the
Praxis II.
Additional information on the NCLB Act, as well as on the qualifications of your child’s
teacher is available on request. Please contact AOS 43 Central Office at 943-7317, if you
have questions or would like further information. Working with parents is an important
aspect of our efforts to help students learn and we welcome your interest.